Andy’s Player Ratings: San Antonio FC 1-3 Sunderland - Three wins from three for Mowbray’s men! https://rokerreport.sbnation.com/20...erland-three-wins-from-three-for-mowbrays-men Anthony Patterson: 6/10 Got caught out from a quickly taken long range free kick, really should have been more alive to that but looked comfortable in possession and made a good save low down from another free kick. Lynden Gooch (C): 7/10 Really good low cross for the second goal and played another good ball in behind for Hemir earlier in the half. Got up and down the line well considering the heat. Dan Ballard: 7/10 Strolled through the game and won everything that came his way, showed a good turn of pace a few times to escape the press and find a team-mate. Luke O’Nien: 6/10 Started a little slowly and almost got caught a couple of times by pace in behind but recovered well. Niall Huggins: 6/10 Like Gooch on the other side, got up and down the line well but without causing any danger. Dan Neil: 6/10 Kept it simple in the middle of the pitch, mopping up in front of the back four. Jobe Bellingham: 7/10 Played well alongside Neil, picked his moments to attack and when he did he showed good athleticism to carry us up the pitch quickly. Patrick Roberts: 7/10 Always dangerous, thought he overplayed a little bit at times but combined well with Gooch and Rigg and always looked our most dangerous player. Chris Rigg: 7/10 Good movement to get in behind for the opening goal and a calm finish and then almost repeated it after being played in by Roberts but was unfortunate to see his shot saved. Did not look out of place physically. Abdoullah Ba: 6/10 Didn’t get much change out of the full back as Ba was wider than we usually see him but played a great ball over the top for the first goal. Hemir: 7/10 Not massively involved in the game due to the nature of the game but showed good movement throughout, kept the ball well and made good decisions on the ball. Had one run in behind that saw him blast over from an angle and may have scored the second goal after a good near post run. Substitutes Trai Hume: 6/10 Not hugely involved but tidy in possession and made an important last gasp tackle to prevent a goal. Nector Triantis: 6/10 His passing looked sharp and always looks keen to press his man. Danny Batth: 6/10 Marshalled the back line well in the middle of the back four without ever being stretched. Joe Anderson: 6/10 Defended well but his passing was a bit off, particularly late on. Ellis Taylor: 6/10 Plenty of energy on the left-hand side but struggled to find a team-mate. Pierre Ekwah: 8/10 Really good performance in the middle of the pitch, bossed it defensively and made some great bursts forward. Jay Matete: 6/10 Does so much good off the ball, shows for the ball all the time, always hassling the opposition but let down again by some sloppy passing. Issac Lihadji: 7/10 Looked a threat whenever he got the ball, showed some nice trickery to get past two on the byline, cut inside but saw his shot blocked, then had another shot well saved after a good turn on the edge of the box. Worked hard off the ball too. Jack Clarke: 7/10 Typical Jack Clarke performance, was just missing a goal. Ran in behind all night, terrorising the full back but his shooting was a bit off, came close a few times. Jewison Bennette: 7/10 Really well taken goal late on, burst past the defender and slotted into the corner. Man of the Match: Pierre Ekwah Chris Rigg was very good in the first half but Ekwah was the best player on the pitch overall, far too strong and quick for the opposition. A number of times he won the ball deep and set up a quick counter either through a good ball or bursting forward himself, one notable example was him winning the ball deep in our own half, playing a ball over the top for Clarke to run onto and then getting up the pitch to get on the end of Clarke’s ball but was unlucky to see his shot saved. please log in to view this image Photo by Ian Horrocks/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images
By the sounds of the reports in pre-season and going of his performances at the back end of last season, Ekwah is going to be immense for us this year
Didn't watch the match, but I've seen the goals on here and online, what's people's who watched it opinions of how it went? Who caught the eye? Rigg's goal is quality, lovely finish and a top class ball in from Ba. Very composed finish for a 16 year old. Bennette's goal is a lovely bit of individual skill and he showed some real pace as well. The own goal came from a good ball in and a nice run from Semedo to put pressure on the defence to try and play it, causing it to be turned in, but it seemed to come from some nice link up play beforehand from what I could see. Their goal, well Patto is going to have some nightmares about it. Caught in no man's land and not fully switched on and their bloke spotted it. Great finish, but he shouldn't have been allowed to do it.
Lol we might have problems with selection in cm. Neil, Ekwah, Bellingham and Rigg. Long season so i'm sure they'll all get plenty of game time.
He is https://rokerreport.sbnation.com/20...d-chose-the-us-for-pre-season-were-put-to-bed Standout performers Credit has to go to Pierre Ekwah, who just looked streets above everyone else on the pitch at times. The way he carries the ball at pace whilst having to shrug off numerous opposition players is majestic, and I’ve got really high hopes for him in the coming season. Chris Rigg played really well too in that first half, and perhaps the biggest compliment I can pay him is that he never looked out of place in terms of ability and, crucially, physicality. The fact he’s able to do that at sixteen years of age is seriously promising, and the fact he’s scoring goals is going to help him stand out in pre-season. Clearly he’s now thought of as a first teamer and... well, if he earns his place there’s absolutely no reason why he can’t play a part at the start of the season, providing he keeps on working hard and playing well. There is only one thing he needs to do, after all, and that’s impress his manager. Isaac Lihadji had a canny game too I felt, and whilst his future at the club potentially remains in the balance following rumours that he's being courted by a Qatari team, in his two performances to date in pre-season I think he’s actually looked very good on that right hand side and has certainly done himself no harm when it comes to proving his worth. Other than that: Hemir led the line well and worked hard, linking up the play which is what you want to see from any Sunderland striker (and having seen the replays a few times now I definitely think that he has a right to claim that second goal); Dan Ballard was aggressive and commanding as he always is; Lynden Gooch found space down our right hand side time after time to exploit the San Antonio backline; Jobe Bellingham played slightly deeper as a holding midfielder in the first half and looked very comfortable; Patrick Roberts was full of tricks and was important to the amount of chances we created, sliding balls frequently in behind their defence; Jack Clarke at times looked a class above with his touch and the way he carried the ball; and Jewison Bennette was a constant threat with his movement and pace, and I’m glad he was rewarded with a brilliantly taken goal at the end. All in all, some really good performances and lots to build on here.
Feeling Ekwah will be first name on the team sheet this season. Hemir I think will also come good once he finds his feet. Shows what we missed last season. Drags defenders out of position holds up well. His movement will open up space for the talent we have behind him. Keep it coming lads
Thanks for all the updates, videos and reviews lads. A note about the goal Patto let in - the ball travels further in warm air as it’s less dense. He probably claims that ok in a game over here.
ok, firstly the temperature showed 104F at kick off (42C) but for a pre-season warm up game the lads handled it well and showed plenty energy. in my opinion, Ba handled it all in comfort, seemed more relaxed and less 'legs' with some good through balls and obviously the assist for Rigg was excellent so he gets my 1st half MotM with Rigg a close second. Dan Neil kept it moving in the middle, Roberts was Roberts with some moves coming off and looking good and others falling flat but that is what he does and he does it well. defence pretty much handled everything but these lads like to shoot a lot, hate to say it but Onien did not start well, did improve with some typical blocks though. 2nd half was totally different, again Lihadji looked eager and always showed for the ball but i wish his legs knew what he was doing...stand out performer has to be Ekwah though, really strong and constant good moves, attacked well like a 'proper' box to box player, my 2nd half MotM...Clarke just kept playing as if he has never been off the pitch. defence stood strong and worked well against a team that liked to press, they will have also been more used to the heat, Hemir made good moves and at times came deeper to help build an attack, Bellingham looked really assured in the middle...to be honest, no one hid and apart from some simple mistakes (Onien's early tackles, Patterson's position for the goal and a couple of others) the lads looked sharp and fit, but that is the reason for pre-season games to get that out of the system and get built up...three wins is good of course as it helps build that winning feeling even if they mean nowt. i lasted till the final whistle so forgive me if i have forgotten anything
You don't see enough of strikers making the near post run these days. Can lead to endless possibilities.
True, if he hadn't received the pass that was two defenders he took out of contention. He's quick for his size looks like he's going to be very useful.
Hemir might have a bigger kick on him than Simms. He soared one over the bar from just outside the 6-yard box, and you could see the fear register in the goalie's expression, which seemed to linger a bit longer than you would expect. Early on, we launched a counter from mid-field. Initially, Hemir was the tip of the sword, but he fell well off the pace of the attack and was not involved in the result. The other SAFC was bringing out the ball from the back when Dan Neil executed a perfect slide tackle which seemed to 'erase' the ball carrier.
When you look at the size of Gooch compared to Hemir it’s amazing the difference. Then you think back to the Luton game where most of their players were the same size as Hemir and you can clearly see why we struggled against them. Looks as though that problem is sorted for this season although quite rightly mentioned if Ballard and Baath had been fit we would be in the Premier League imo.
